In two relatively older deals which have surfaced in Turkey’s import scrap market, the uptrend of prices has continued.
A Marmara-based mill has concluded an ex-US booking for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap at $380/mt CFR, shredded scrap $400/mt CFR and bonus grade scrap at $400/mt CFR. The benchmark quality price is $10-15/mt higher than the previous level.
Meanwhile, the same buyer has concluded an ex-Baltic deal with HMS I/II 80:20 scrap prices standing at $375/mt CFR. Some market players report that this deal was done last week. This price level is also $10-15/mt higher than the previous price range.
While sentiment in Turkey’s import scrap market remains positive, market players state that the current uptrend may be relatively short-lived. “Everything depends on demand right now. The recent increases were caused by the rapid demand received from export and local finished steel markets,” a source reported, adding, “Most scrap suppliers sold their cargoes to alternative destinations to replace Turkey, and so when they were asked for cargoes for shipment in the second half of July, prices increased due to the tightness of supply.” SteelOrbis suspects that the latest price rises may only be temporary but sellers could test the market with prices above $400/mt CFR for HMS I/II 80:20 scrap for August shipments. Depending on finished steel demand, scrap prices may soften again from $400s/mt CFR. The finished steel demand received by Turkish mills from their domestic market was mainly caused by the tax investigation which disrupted the deliveries of previous orders, forcing buyers to replace them by buying rebar again from other sources. Since it is the middle of the construction season, no further additional rebar demand is foreseen in the coming months for big and new projects. As Turkish mills are raising their export offers for rebar, SteelOrbis still hears that bids from foreign buyers are at $620s/mt FOB, lower than Turkish mills’ offers.
In the short sea segment, suppliers have taken a big step back as they watch the deep sea segment moving up sharply. There are almost no offers to Turkey right now from Romania and Bulgaria, and the workable levels for sellers are above $360s/mt CFR. Although there are no new deals from the Black Sea, SteelOrbis will revise its ex-Romania HMS I/II 80:20 scrap prices to $350-355/mt CFR. A similar quietness is observed in the ex-Israel segment. Sellers there are monitoring the uptrend in the international scrap market, while the workable levels they voice are at $335-340/mt CIF Iskenderun for HMS I/II 75:25 scrap.